Shaun Heller

Shaun Heller

Biography

I have an extensive career in the horticultural industry that I am now combining with my research as a geologist at the University of Brighton. Currently Researching ‘water, soil and plant contamination in chalk aquifers across the south coast of England’. Member of the Soil Association and have worked with ‘Sos-Rare’ NERC/BGS research group on projects across southern Europe.

In his own words

After spending many years within the horticultural industry, I joined the University of Brighton as an undergraduate, whilst looking for a step to seething bigger and more internationally relevant. I found it apparent that there was a direct link between what I had done in the past and where I wanted to go in the future. Attending conferences as an undergraduate exposed me to research projects that reignited my passion for plants and allowed me to adapt my past knowledge towards my own research projects.

I believe that the most important thing we do as a species is protect the resources that we can ill afford to lose, the best way to go about that is to work with the industry to firstly understand the damage that has been caused by past projects, and implement successful and economical remediation projects in the future with the aim of minimising contamination associated to the industry. My personal goal is to raise the profile of the mining industry and have it recognised for the good things that it brings to the world rather than the unfortunate mistakes of the past.